Former SEC Chair Gary Gensler Returns to MIT

Former SEC Chair Gary Gensler has resumed a role at MIT following his departure from the agency on pro-crypto President Trump’s Inauguration Day.

Gensler will rejoin as Professor of the Practice in both the Global Economics and Management Group and the Finance Group, focusing on artificial intelligence, finance, financial technology, and public policy, as announced by the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Gensler will also be co-director of the FinTechAI@CSAIL initiative within MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, aimed at exploring new AI technologies, opportunities, technical challenges, and applications within finance.

> “I am honored to return to MIT, whose faculty, staff and students have long been at the cutting edge of research and technology,” Gensler said following his appointment. “I’m thrilled to once again collaborate with MIT’s distinguished team of scholars creating a better future for all through artificial intelligence, finance, and technology.”

Crypto-friendly former regulator Paul Atkins is set to replace Gensler as permanent SEC Chair, having been nominated by President Trump. However, Republican Commissioner Mark Uyeda has taken temporary charge pending Atkins’ approval by the U.S. Senate. Fellow Commissioner Hester Peirce is also set to lead a new crypto task force.

Gensler’s Contentious Relationship with the Crypto Industry

While Gensler repeatedly stated he was “technology-neutral” during his tenure at the SEC, his enforcement-heavy approach was widely perceived as aggressive towards the crypto industry.

Under Gensler’s leadership, the SEC pursued lawsuits against major firms such as Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, and Ripple. The agency’s approach was criticized as “regulation by enforcement” rather than establishing clear rules.

Gensler’s SEC rejected multiple spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund applications for years, eventually approving them in January 2024, but only after legal and political pressure.

He claimed that most crypto assets, except Bitcoin, were unregistered securities, implying nearly all crypto projects violated U.S. law, and described the industry as akin to the “Wild West.” He encouraged firms to register without providing a clear framework, according to critics.

Despite this, Gensler had taught about blockchain at MIT before joining the SEC and recognized its potential, arguing that his regulatory approach prioritized investor protection rather than an attack on the industry.

Teaching Blockchain Technology

Before becoming SEC Chair, Gary Gensler was a Professor of the Practice of Global Economics and Management at MIT, focusing on blockchain technology, digital assets, and financial technology.

One of his notable courses, “Blockchain and Money,” analyzed Bitcoin, cryptocurrencies, blockchain technology, smart contracts, and central bank digital currencies, exploring their potential use and the regulatory challenges of digital assets. Gensler often referred to Bitcoin’s decentralized nature and described it as a “modern form of digital gold.”